Vietnam-based e-commerce logistics startup Boxme has raised VND150 billion ($6.4 million) in a funding round from local technology firm NextTech Group and digital payment platform Ngan Luong. Separately, loyalty and e-commerce firm Society Pass has acquired NusaTrip, a Jakarta-based online travel agency in Indonesia and across Southeast Asia.
NextTech invests $6.4m in Boxme
Vietnam-based e-commerce logistics startup Boxme has raised VND150 billion ($6.4 million) in a funding round from local technology firm NextTech Group and digital payment platform Ngan Luong, according to an announcement.
The new investment will facilitate BOXME to quickly expand the scale of fulfillment centres in Vietnam to maximise the demand for order fulfillment and shipping services of e-commerce businesses.
Founded in 2016, Boxme provides fulfillment services with an extensive warehouse system and advanced technology with automated order fulfillment. The company claims that currently has three large fulfillment centres in Vietnam with a processing speed of more than 50,000 orders per day during mega campaigns of many major e-commerce platforms.
NextTech Group operates in eight other markets across Southeast Asia and China within four major sectors, including e-commerce, fintech, e-logistics and education, and 15 portfolio companies.
In 2019, the group launched a $10-million early-stage-focused fund. Called Next100, the fund participates in seed rounds of startups with an investment of $100,000 to $1 million, in a bid to boost the burgeoning startup ecosystem of the country and help technology entrepreneurs carve out a path to success.
In 2021, Next100 launched a $50-million fund to back blockchain companies in Vietnam and Southeast Asia.
Meanwhile, Ngan Luong is a subsidiary of NextTech. Launched in 2009, it is now one of the most popular payment gateways in Vietnam, processing over $50 million in monthly transactions.
Society Pass acquires Indonesia’s NusaTrip
Vietnam’s loyalty and e-commerce firm Society Pass announced the acquisition of NusaTrip, a Jakarta-based Online Travel Agency (OTA) in Indonesia and across SEA, according to an announcement.
The transaction value was not disclosed.
The NusaTrip acquisition extends SoPa’s business reach into the booming SEA regional travel industry and marks its foray into Indonesia. It also adds to SoPa’s growing ecosystem of technology-enabled companies located in Vietnam, Indonesia, Philippines, Singapore and Thailand.
The move comes shortly after Society Pass acquired Thailand-headquartered media company Thoughtful Media Group (TMG) to enter the local market.
Established in 2013 as the first Indonesian OTA accredited by the International Air Transport Association, NusaTrip pioneered offering a comprehensive range of airlines and hotels to Indonesian corporate and retail customers.
The company claims that it has onboarded 1.2 million+ registered users, 500+ airlines and 200,000+ hotels around the world as well as connected with over 80 million unique visitors.
SoPa’s business model focuses on analysing user data through its Society Pass loyalty platform and circulation of its universal loyalty points or Society Points. The Society Pass loyalty platform drives customer acquisition and increases customer retention for merchants.